Alissa and Ian were a blast to work with and so was their entire bridal party. We had some pretty good laughs during the formal photos. My second shooter, Amber was AMAZING and some of these lovely photos were taken by her.

They opted to see each other before the ceremony (which from a photographer’s perspective is AWESOME). We got such a great variety!!

Alissa and Ian, congrats on your marriage and I hope you love your photos!!!

So how on earth do I write about the most amazing wedding?? I guess I’ll give you some back story. Since it’s my blog, I suppose I can ‘keep it real’ and give you my story.

Let’s back up about six months.

My dad was single. He had started to settle into a bachelor life and was happy spending time with his hobbies and playing with his grandkids. Then one day out of the blue he came over and said he wanted to chat. Now, I’m not gonna lie, I kinda freaked out and wondered what had happened. He had that strange serious look about him that made me think something was wrong. So we sat down with some coffee (our usual) and he began to ask what I thought about a particular gal he knew. When he mentioned her name he had this grin and a sparkle in his eye so I KNEW how he felt about her. I immediately squealed  “I LIKE HER  and you should date her!!!”  He laughed and we continued the conversation.

Let me back up a bit farther. My dad had a best friend for over twenty years. Six years ago he passed away after a car accident. It was really hard on his family and of course my dad. I had known them since I was really small and even babysat their kids.

The gal he was talking about was his best friends widow. And let me tell you she is PERFECT!!!

My dad found out that she had feelings for him through a mutual friend and he was asking me what I thought. Being the romantic that I am, I told him to call her and ask her to go to coffee or on a date with him. Not two hours later, I found out that he had called her and she had invited him over. He was as giddy as giddy can be and it was so fun to watch.

Fast forward a month later and they got engaged. A few months later was the wedding. They roll like my hubby and I. (we got engaged after six weeks and married a few months later. hehe)

There is so much more to this story that I don’t even have the writing skills to explain. Here’s the main theme. My dad and Pam are perfect for each other. Like seriously two peas in a pod perfect!!! I have absolutely no doubt in my mind that God brought them together. All of the pieces of every detail were practically laid out in front of them.

So Pam has four daughters, who are now my new sisters. My family is COMPLETELY ginormous now. Like huge. We won’t even begin to explain how many people I’m now related to on my side of the family and my husband’s side of the family or we would be here all night. In fact, if you’re still reading all of this instead of skipping to the photos, I seriously applaud you. I’m not a writer at all, so this is huge for me.

Anyhoo,

Husband and Wife were married in their backyard and they will live happily ever after!!

Whew, that was easier.

on to the photos!!!

Pam hugging my dad’s mom, and dad hugging Pam’s mom. I LOVE this photo.

our not so small immediate family

(and yes, this is just kids and spouses and grand-kids LOL)

my absolute favorite!!!

I love these from the toast!!

off to the honeymoon!!

Thanks dad and Pam for everything. I love you both very much!!

Thank you so much for letting me be a part of your day!!

And now instead of me babbling, here’s the photos!!!

Model material right there. You’re gorgeous Krista!!!

fierce.

Congrats Mr. and Mrs. Maher!!!!

I hope you enjoy your preview!!

I was beyond thrilled when they asked me to be their wedding photographer for their 10/10/2010 wedding (cool date, huh?!!)

We had a blast doing their engagement photos and I created this collage for them. I love it so much I’m printing a sample for my studio.

They totally get my style and I love it when sessions work out so perfectly!

I posted this sale a while back on my wedding price list, but it expired on Jan. 1st. Due to a few requests I’m now extending the sale until January 30th.

So call now to reserve your date!

(as of now, July is completely booked and most of August. Please inquire for availability on dates.)

It was an absolutely perfect day for their wedding!

They tied the knot under a tent at Lake Sacajawea and had their reception at the Monticello Hotel. The Monticello is one of my favorite places in Longview to photograph. It’s rich history makes for some amazing backdrops for photos.They are such a beautiful couple and I had a great time photographing their wedding. Thank you so much for trusting me with your big day.

I will post more later from your “day after session.”

Congrats on your marriage!!

Michelle’s details were absolutely beautiful.

It takes five hours less for guys to get ready than girls. Totally not fair!

Such a beautiful couple!

Kyle’s older brother performed the ceremony. It was a very special time for their family.

kickin it old school style!

these are my favorites from the day!

I LOVED the cake and their gorgeous rings. Check out the color and the bling!

so much in love..

this group of folks knew how to parrrtaayyyy!!

The group!

Thanks so much for having me photograph your big day. I hope you enjoy your preview!!

how girls get ready…

how guys get ready…

I can’t even begin to tell you how much fun I had with these folks. As my regular blog readers know, I don’t like traditional group photos. I’m always looking for fun and creative ways to photograph large groups. These guys totally made my job easy and fun!!

Paul and Rachel didn’t see each other before the wedding, so we had some extra time to get nice portraits of them by themselves.

Mr. and Mrs. Strickland!

Congrats on your marriage, Paul and Rachel!!!

They got married at the Lewis River Golf Course in Woodland, WA. The staff was amazing. They even drove us in golf carts out to a pond to get some great shots of Troy and Kaylyn. This was my very first wedding at the golf course and I was more than impressed.

Kaylyn has such a sense of style and it showed throughout her whole wedding. The flowers and decorations were gorgeous. A lot of her friends and family pitched in to help. It was amazing to see how many people loved and supported Troy and Kaylyn. They are so blessed to have so many wonderful people in their lives.

Here’s a quick preview of the wedding. Click HERE to view the wedding slideshow to see many more images from the wedding.

I worked on the slideshow for the past week. It has over 180 images in it. I didn’t realize how difficult it would be to put it all together. Kudos to all the folks that do these all the time.

Whew!!!

I really wanted to make it special for them. I hope you enjoy it!

To view the wedding slideshow click HERE

Enjoy sneak peak #2!!

she’s absolutely stunning..

WHEEEEEE!!!!!

and the formal photo… not as exciting, but important nonetheless…

every time I looked at  this one,  it made me smile. I hope it makes you smile too..

counting the cash from the money dance…

Here’s a preview of my latest work with the Lovely Miss L.

These were taken here in Longview at Lake Sacajawea in the Asian Gardens (one of my favorite locations).

It was a blast and if you or anyone you know is interested in doing one of these, please call me!!!

I’m offering discounted session fees for those who want their own “trash the dress” session.

I hope you enjoy the pictures. Leave me a comment and let me know what you think….